Palisades Asks For Help In Finding Free's Replacement

The Palisades School Board has turned to the superintendent of the Springfield Township School District in Montgomery County to help find a successor to Superintendent Thomas Free.

Free retires at the end of this school year.

Springfield Superintendent William Leary will charge Palisades only for expenses, which can include the cost of advertising the job opening and travel to pursue qualified applicants, among other things, said board member David Oleksa. The resolution, passed by the board in an 8-1 vote on Wednesday, authorizes up to $5,000 in expenses.

The amount was approved in a closed session, Oleksa said. Expenses beyond $5,000 must come back to the full board for approval.

"I'm intending to go into consulting in five or six years, when I retire," Leary said in a telephone interview Friday. "This will give me legitimacy in the field."

Leary said his board is aware he is volunteering to help Palisades on his own time. If he collected a paycheck from Palisades, it could be construed as a conflict of interest, he said.

Leary has been a superintendent for 24 years, the last five at the helm of the Springfield district. Eight of those years he spent as superintendent of the East Penn School District in Emmaus.

He has worked variously as an English teacher, guidance counselor, college admissions director and high school principal.

In addition to Leary, the Palisades School Board considered three search firms to look for Free's successor.

"They were pricey," School Director David Oleksa said.

Leary is "knowledgeable and well-connected," in addition to offering the right price, Oleksa said. "We have all of our faith in Dr. Leary," he said. "We tracked down his references and he came back as a sterling individual."

School Director Samuel A. Litzenberger was the only member of the board who voted against the appointment. Litzenberger said Friday he had "nothing against Dr. Leary" but would not say why he cast the no vote.

It will be Leary's job to advertise for, solicit and help screen candidates for the superintendency. He also will work with a search committee that consists of administrators, school directors, teachers, parents and non-parent taxpayers, according to Oleksa.